Wings to Fly
by iamMILKSAMA
Summary: The darkness came, but then the light whisked her away. young!Auron x Rikku. Rated M for mature content. Based off of Dark Cloud.


_**DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own Final Fantasy X or it's characters. The only thing I own are some really terribad writing skills. Also, no chocobos were harmed in the writing the first chapter.**_

_**Author's Note: **__It's about time for my first fan fiction in a while. Just an idea that came to me when I was playing through Final Fantasy X, with some Dark Cloud tied in there for plot. Some things are going to be a tad bit inaccurate, but I'll do my best to keep things according to the actual timeline._

_Keep in mind, that this fic is rated M for a reason. There will be strong language, blood and gore, and sexual content._

_The beginning's going to be a little rough due to writer's block, but let's have some Aurikku, shall we?_

* * *

**Chapter 1. Prologue**

It was no secret that she had felt overwhelmingly out of place ever since the dust surrounding the Vegnagun incident had settled. Yuna had Tidus, Paine had Nooj…what did she have?

A whole lot of nothing, that's what she had.

On their final mission, Rikku had made her feelings quite clear. For a moment, her kinship for Yuna had faltered. It had been a momentary weakness. Although she had felt terrible about her outburst back at the top of the Yadonoki Tower, thinking back on it now she couldn't help but feel that she was justified in her displeasure.

Of course, there was no one she could exactly approach about it without looking like a total _telg. _Rikku could only stand by in silence, completing mission after mission after mission…

She was tired. Scratch that, she wanted to _re_tire, even though she was still extremely young. Twenty now, to be exact. Of course, Rikku could do whatever Rikku put her mind to. So, she did just what she had intended to do from the very beginning.

"Good boy," the Al Bhed cooed lovingly, one small hand patting the side of the strikingly sizable bird's head. "Don't go running off on me now, or you're gonna be dinner! Got that?"

The chocobo shook it's head in response, leather reigns and metal buckles slapping noisily against each other. Rikku smiled victoriously, holding out a handful of top grade grains as if the tiny granules were the greatest reward she could ever ask for. The bird only eyed the food warily before turning it's nose-er, beak, upwards in rejection of the offering.

Rikku's left eye twitched in irritation, the muscles controlling the expression of her mouth struggling to keep her brand-name smile in it's rightful place. "Okay. Fine. Be that way." She had spent a lot of gil on that food and this damn chocobo was going to eat it. - eventually.

Clasko had given her the chocobo in commemoration of her newest conquest, but she didn't know that becoming a full-time chocobo trainer was…well, difficult, to put things lightly.

To be completely honest, she had never viewed herself as much of a chocobo person to begin with. It was a 'spur-of-the-moment' kind of thing - a crutch that Rikku planned on using in order to get away from her busy life.

Of course, it wasn't working out quite as perfectly as she had planned.

"Alrighty then," Rikku spoke up, pocketing the small pile of grains into a pouch hanging from her belt: yet another gift from Clasko, of course. "This will be our first ride. You and me, buddy. If you're good, I'll give you all the grass and grain you want!"

The chocobo eyed Rikku warily, a quiet '_kweh_' sounding from it's throat. The Al Bhed simply smiled back, taking hold of the leather reigns with a firm grip. Slowly and carefully, she hoisted herself up, hooking one foot through the stirrup hoops and pulling her weight across the chocobo's back until she could settle atop the leather saddle.

Rikku didn't realize she had been holding her breath until she was sitting upright on the chocobo's back. "Great," she started, gently patting the side of the bird's neck. "Now let's take a few steps, okay?"

A few steps.

That's really all she wanted from the chocobo. However, what she got was a full-fledged _run_. The chocobo flapped it's wings wildly, easily bouncing up into the air before it's long legs began to proceed forward at a speed Rikku was sure could have broken existing records.

Screaming for her life, the Al Bhed held tight to the chocobo, her arms linked firmly around it's neck. It was uncomfortable, sure. But she would take uncomfortable over _dead_ any day.

The chocobo's shrill cries didn't do much to help her case, either. Where was everyone when she needed to be saved, anyway?

Unfortunately, Rikku didn't have much time to think on that matter as she finally opened her eyes to see that the chocobo was barreling straight for one of the many ravines of the Calm Lands. It land seemed to yawn lazily, gaping maw almost welcoming her to impending doom.

All she could do at that moment was hold on with all the strength she could muster, the chocobo's legs springing the feathery yellow body right off the side of the cliff face with Rikku still tightly attached.

The chocobo soared easily through the air. Time seemed to slow down for Rikku, green eyes wide and her honey hair whipping violently back in the burst of wind. The other end of the ravine was so close, yet it seemed so far away. Of course, Rikku couldn't quite appreciate the wonder of her situation, as she was far too busy shrieking at the top of her lungs.

"_AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGHH_!"

They almost made it. _Almost _wasn't good enough though. With a painful squawk, the chocobo impacted the side of the cliff and began to skid down the jagged rocks. If it weren't for the stupid bird having wings, Rikku was sure she would have died right then and there.

It managed to right itself, but in the process of regaining it's balance, Rikku lost her own grip around the animal's neck and tumbled backwards. The remaining distance to the bottom of the ravine actually wasn't that far, but it felt like she had been falling for an eternity before she finally hit a point where she couldn't fall anymore.

A dull pain shot through her entire body, her face furrowing up in distress. When her eyes opened again, she turned her blurry gaze to the sky, now so far above her that she couldn't hope to reach it.

It took a moment for Rikku to regain her bearings, finally able to pull herself to her knees and catch her breath. Everything felt intact. Well, except for her newly injured pride. Rikku groaned lowly, combing her fingers through her now messy hair.

"Shit," she cursed under her breath, taking time to gauge the distance of how far she had fallen. The likelihood of being able to climb up the side of the ravine was little-to-none. Her only hope now was to wait until someone came looking for her or to look for a way out herself.

Rikku glanced upwards again, the glint of sunlight on yellow feathers catching her eye. The chocobo that had kindly dropped her off a cliff as now peering down at her, almost as if it was taunting her. Rikku felt her blood boil, anger rising up into the hollow of her chest and bubbling there until she couldn't contain it anymore.

"What the fuck are you looking at?" she spat, balling one hand into a fist and shaking it at the bird above her. It only cocked it's head to the side in response before ducking out of view, presumably to leave the area and act like nothing had happened.

"Yeah? You better run! 'Cause when I get back up there, you're cooked! Roasted! Over a fire! You hear me?"

Rikku's voice echoed off of the many pointed rocks lining the sides of the chasm, but it was a futile effort. She was sure no one could hear her. Well, chocobo probably could, but it was most likely choosing to ignore her at this point.

Her shoulders fell. She certainly had a knack for getting herself into sticky situations such as this one. "Well, no point in standing around," Rikku whispered to herself. Someone was bound to have seen her little accident. If not, they would realize that she was missing…hopefully.

Raising her head, Rikku began to move forward. Her muscles ached in protest of her actions, but she resolved to keep going. It was more than likely that there were fiends lurking around. She definitely didn't want to be there when one of them reared their ugly heads.

Rikku walked for a while, unable to track the number of minutes or hours that had passed. The dull pain plaguing her limbs eventually faded into a residual soreness, but it wasn't anything too traumatizing. She would definitely feel it in the morning, though.

"Where am I?"

She had explored many nooks and crannies in her lifetime, but this particular crevice was somewhere she hadn't been before. The path the chocobo had taken in it's panic was unknown to her, as she had been preoccupied with staying alive.

By the look of things, she was farther down compared to the Cavern of the Stolen Fayth, but not so far down that she couldn't see the sky. The top of the ravine was still visible to her, but it was high enough that climbing out wasn't a viable option.

Eventually, the gorge widened out into what would have been Rikku's only hope for escaping this whole mess; save for the fact that the walls of the cliff reached even higher now and completely encompassed the area. The only way out was turning around and heading back the way she came, but…

She wasn't able to notice it until now, but there were markings all around the cliff sides. Glyphs and symbols of different origins and meanings, carved or engraved into the rock in the intent of what could have been markers. Who would have been down here previously, though?

Rikku couldn't help an involuntary shudder. Spira worked in mysterious ways. There were more and more dark secrets lurking around every corner. The Vegnagun incident popped into her mind like a bubble, before fading away just as quickly as it came.

She sighed. Who was to stop her from a quick inspection of the area? It wasn't like anyone would be waiting for her, after all. It was a bitter thought, but alas…it was true.

Shoving the idea from her mind, Rikku raised her head and advanced forward with a sense of forced clarity until rock prevented her from proceeding any further.

A glyph unlike any she had seen before greeted her face-to-face. It was much larger than the others in the chasm. In a way, it seemed to call for her attention, as well as her company.

Rikku swallowed hard. She couldn't quite shake the terrible feeling that had started to settle in the pit of her stomach, but her curiosity was far too much to bear. It was the curse of being an Al Bhed - no, the curse of being human.

One unsteady hand reached upwards towards the glyph, hesitating momentarily before fingertips brushed gently over it's surface. For a moment, there was nothing.

But then, there was something.

One by one, the ancient sigils around her began to light up. It was beautiful, but in a way, it was almost…sad. Their radiant shine possessed somber traits as they faded away, only to bloom once again and die. Then, the sizeable glyph in front of her began to glow. It was dim at first, but it gradually grew into a great shine that outclassed the rest.

Words. Words, like trickling streams of water, washed over the surface of the glyph. Rikku had never seen these types of symbols before, not even in ancient ruins that dated back to a thousand years ago.

However, before she could spend too much time trying to decipher it, the symbols vanished into nothing and there was a great rumbling in the rocks. If Rikku hadn't known better, she would have turned tail and run right then and there.

The rumbling finally ceased and the glowing of the sigils died away into nothingness, leaving nothing but a set of heavy-looking doors in their wake and a feeling of emptiness in the Al Bhed's chest.

Rikku swallowed hard. She knew what often lied behind mysterious doors from experience, yet she couldn't bring herself to stay away from the ornate entryway. It was almost like whatever was inside was calling to her.

She knew that she had to turn back. People would be searching for her, but…

"I'm here."

If she hadn't stopped to think back on those words, she wouldn't have realized that she was the one who said them. Her legs moved forward of their own volition and her hands laid themselves upon the decorated stone slabs.

With a gentle push, the doors opened, greeting Rikku with an intense blackness that only served to draw her in further. Slow footsteps; one, two… Before she knew it, she was already passing through into the interior of the mysterious entrance.

Before she knew it, the doors behind her swung shut with an ominous creak, locking the unsuspecting Al Bhed inside.


End file.
